WILL THE ZAMBONI HAVE A JET ENGINE?
Hundreds prepare rink for Avs-Kings outdoor game — rain, snow or shine
Snow fell the day the first moving trucks passed through Air Force Academy security gates to begin an ambitious process of transforming Falcon Stadium from a college football field into a professional ice hockey rink.
Hundreds of workers braved waves of powder around the clock over nearly two weeks to construct the final product. And Saturday night, a near-sellout crowd will take it all in as the Avalanche and Kings meet in an outdoor showcase celebrating the sport’s proud history.
But establishing and maintaining world-class ice standards with Mother Nature in the picture can prove difficult.
After snowing throughout last week, the temperature in Colorado Springs reached 50 degrees Friday. At 6 p.m. Saturday at puck drop, the forecast is for temperatures in the low-30s with partly cloudy skies.
But go ahead and wait five minutes. The forecast could change.
Mike Craig, the NHL’s senior manager of facility/hockey operations, remains unconcerned. Rain, snow or shine, he’s confident the ice will hold up Saturday night.
“There are a lot of people involved and a lot of effort, time and energy to make this happen,” Craig said. “It’s a good feeling.”
Crews began to lay flooring over the artificial grass surface Feb. 3, and centered at midfield beneath the ice rink, custom-made aluminum trays were placed and connected through a series of hoses to a 53-foot, 300-ton capacity mobile refrigeration unit. The massive trailer sits on the south end of the stadium and is capable of pumping as much as 3,000 gallons of glycol coolant to maintain an ideal temperature of 22
degrees.
Once boards were installed, the meticulous process of turning 20,000 gallons of ordinary tap water into 2 inches of NHL ice started with fine mist machines slowly and evenly applying water across the entire oval surface. The ice was later whitened with about 350 gallons of paint before lines and logos were added.
An electronic alert system allows the NHL to adjust surface temperatures with changing conditions. It’s a 24-hour job.
Craig has helped orchestrate the league’s outdoor games since 2013 and has encountered a wide range of weather — from 13 degrees with swirling snow in Ann Arbor, Mich., to 62 degrees and clear in Los Angeles, and everything else in between.
“We really strive to have conditions out here just the same as NHL games,” Craig said. “There is a lot of fine-tuning.”
Outdoor NHL hockey was last played in Colorado at Coors Field in 2016 with the Red Wings rivalry, and it was a balmy 65 degrees in late February when Detroit handed the Avalanche a 4-3 loss. John Mitchell, a former Avs defenseman (2012-17), remembers that sunny afternoon well.
“It was a little bit bright when we first started playing and then it got dark,” Mitchell said. “It’s always neat when you can go out there and you can see the sky or clouds. It’s a lot of fun.”
Playing in an environment that is not temperature-controlled also can present challenges.
“When you got on the bench at Coors Field it was so warm out that you were still sweating, even though you’re sitting on the bench,” Mitchell said. “This game is at night so you won’t have the sun beating down on it. As long as it’s cool, it will be good. If it’s warm, (the ice) will get really sticky and wet, and everything gets bogged down and slowed down quite a bit.”
It appears the temperature for Saturday night’s showcase will hover near or below freezing, which should be great for keeping the ice smooth.
But multimillion-dollar technology and highly trained workers will ensure every inch meets NHL standards throughout the game.
All that’s left now is for the puck to drop.
“We did the game in Coors Field, and we learned a lot,” Craig said. “We’re well-prepared to deal with all that.”
Stadium tickets still available. Those looking for a last-minute seat at Falcon Stadium on Saturday for the NHL Stadium Series game between the Avalanche and Los Angeles Kings are in luck.
Tickets are available for purchase online through Ticketmaster, StubHub and Vivid Seats. Single-seat prices as of early Friday ranged between $109 in the upper level to $454 in the lower level.